With Atkins diet, you can still lose weight even if you do not perform healthy workout, like running, yoga or Pilates.

Why people complained?

As mentioned, Atkins diet consists of protein and fat. The problem with it is that it may not be the best weight loss diet for those with heart disease or hypertension.

This may not also be the best solution to lose weight as it may cause heart problems because it encourages intake of high saturated fat.

Revitalizing approach

Because of the problem associated with Atkins diet, most followers have changed their approach.

Instead of eating more protein and fats, they started to include foods with healthy carbohydrates and fats but still eat protein-rich foods.

Phases of Atkins diet

Despite the changes made to this diet, there are still four different phases you should follow to successfully lose weight and fight weight loss plateau with Atkins.

Phase 1

Includes 20 grams of carbohydrates a day

Must come from vegetables

Requires protein and fat for each meal

Drink a lot of water

Make sure to read food labels and look for hidden carbs

Follow this phase for two weeks

Phase 2

Add five grams of carbohydrates per week to the 20 grams of carb

Take note that it is per week and not per day

Do it until you only have 10 pounds of weight to lose

While in this phase, you must learn your tolerance to carbohydrates

Know how many carbs you can take and the type you can have while still losing weight

Take more low glycemic carbohydrates

Low GI carbs can be taken from veggies, nuts, cheese and berries

Increase the number of carbs a day if you perform healthy workout to make sure that your body can have enough energy to maintain the intensity of your exercise.

Phase 3

Known as the pre-maintenance mode

Learn how to eat to maintain weight loss and avoid weight loss plateau

Start increasing your carb intake by 10 grams each week

Keep doing it until you no longer lose weight

Add starchy veggies, like carrots, white potatoes, yams, and beets.

Include legumes, fruit and grains

Allow your body at this stage to take higher carbs once a week

Avoid going back to your old diet

Remember to eat more carbs but eat at a reduced amount

Keep this in mind so you can avoid gaining weight and stay at your new weight

Phase four

Maintenance period

Follow altered food pyramid

Would mean having grains at the top and meat and its alternatives at the bottom

Weigh yourself once or twice a week

Make sure that you are not starting to gain weight

If you do gain weight, you should take immediate action.

Who can greatly benefit from Atkins diet?

Because of reduced amount of carbohydrate intake, Atkins diet is ideal for those who suffer from blood sugar, like patients with diabetes. This will make it easier for you to manage your blood sugar levels because you will be eating foods with little effects on your insulin levels.

You can also follow this diet if you like eating more meat. Remember that Atkins diet consists of more protein and healthy fats, with less carbs.

Who cannot benefit from it?

This is not the best choice for athletes who engage in a large volume of exercise each day.

Even if you are not an athlete but you still perform high-intensity exercise each week, you may not be able to perform your healthy workout when you follow this diet.

Why?

The reason for this is that athletes and those who perform high-intensity workouts rely on carbs as fuel. If your carbohydrate intake is low, your performance will suffer. As a result, you will not make it through your practice sessions.

Is it a more effective diet for losing weight?

The old Atkins diet could still help you lose weight. But it would negatively affect your cardiovascular system.

With the new approach on Atkins diet, you will be eating healthy fats and consuming reduced amount of low glycemic carbs.

Through Atkins diet, you can eliminate your cravings for refined foods. The carbs that you will be eating are those that our ancestors ate, i.e. they are more in natural state.

Unfortunately, this diet requires you to count calories. Although it is not a must, you must still track your carb intake. And if you are not fond of doing it, this might be overwhelming for you.

As a result of that, you will not continue following Atkins diet and may suffer from weight loss plateau. You may want find a diet that is not too strict.

Is Atkins diet a quick weight loss plan?

Atkins diet does not work that way, unfortunately. This is one of the reasons people do not consider it as an effective weight loss diet.

According to some studies, this type of diet offers better weight loss than the diet recommended by the American Heart Association, i.e. high-carb but low-fat diet.

Atkins diet, as previously mentioned, is useful in those who have disorders affecting their metabolism, like insulin resistance and hypoglycemia.

But this is not a type of diet if you are trying to lose fats permanently. Then again, you cannot find a diet that lets you achieve that goal.

Like any other diets, you will still find it difficult to maintain or keep off the weight.

But, as long as you reduce your carbohydrate intake, you will maintain weight and keep it off.

Thus, you must remind yourself before following this diet that Atkins will never help you keep the fat off for good.

Even those who are low carbohydrate takers cannot keep their weight off for a year.

In fact, most of them fall off the wagon.

The reason for this is that, sooner or later, you will hit a wall. By following this diet, your lifestyle will be affected. Then, you will get bored.

You will not know what will happen in the long run, after phase four.

But, what every fitness expert knows is that no weight loss diet is found to be effective for long-term fat loss.

Can I eat as much as I want while on this diet?

You can eat as much protein and healthy fats as you want but you must restrict your carb intake. That is, if you want to be successful in this diet.

But you will still be counting calories. The reason for this is that you need to make sure that you are within the recommended carbohydrate intake.

Although Atkins diet lets you eat what you want, it does not mean that you can consume as much food as you want. As your appetite is controlled, you will be eating less resulting in less amount of time counting calories or thinking about them.

Followers of this diet eat no more than what their bodies can burn.

Even though counting calories is not on the top list of Atkins diet do’s, it is still a necessary routine. You need to be aware of the calories and portions you are eating.

To be successful in losing weight on Atkins diet, you need to know the law of calorie balance. Anyone who tells you that this diet lets you eat as much as you want but still lose weight is not living in reality.

Does it cause faster, greater fat loss?

According to the developer of this diet, Dr. Atkins, you can lose up to 15 pounds of weight, compared to the recommended weight loss, which is no more than two pounds a week.

This diet can cause greater weight loss during phase one. The reason for this is that it lets you lose large amount of water weight and stored carbohydrate, which is glycogen. But this does not mean that your fat loss has increased.

With this diet, you should not be aiming for permanent fat loss as you will only be discouraged.

You will have rapid weight loss with this diet. But it is mostly water and muscle, just like opting for other diets.

How to achieve permanent fat loss with Atkins diet?

Atkins diet requires you to avoid processed foods. This is a great point by Dr. Atkins. Two of the contributing factors of obesity are sensitivity to carb and hyperinsulinemia. And these can be addressed by this diet.

The diet also emphasizes on eating high protein as it alters your metabolism for the better.

This diet does tackle some important facts about controlling weight and losing weight. But it has left large pieces of the puzzle in maintaining and keeping off the weight that one has lost.

If only permanent fat loss were as easy as removing stubborn carbs from your diet, then you would no longer find obese individuals. Unfortunately, it is not as easy as that.

It is possible that the Atkins diet and other conventional high-carb, low-fat diets both missed the mark, especially in achieving permanent fat loss.

For some fitness experts, dieting, per se, could be the worst way to lose body fat. This is especially true if you do not incorporate healthy workout.

We, at Vim Chi, always emphasize the importance of a healthy workout and a balanced diet in achieving healthy weight loss. Should you need to eat desserts, they must be healthy desserts.

Most of the top diets of today do contain valid points. But they also miss some points and lie about something.

There are good points and bad points in Atkins diet. Most of the dieters have turned themselves into a human guinea pig without even realizing it. They have tried almost every weight loss diet available just to find that sensible, healthy way to lose fat permanently.

What to do instead?

Atkins diet is indeed a useful way to lose weight. But you must not expect permanent weight loss with it.

Make sure that your diet is sustainable. It must be something that you can follow for the rest of your life. And it must be something fit and fun.

Then, include a healthy workout. It can be hiking in the mountain, playing tennis, dancing at the club, etc. Find a workout that you enjoy the most. And have a partner to help you get through every workout.

That workout must be fun. In that way, you will be having a good time and it will not feel like a workout anymore.

Ultimately, finding a healthy weight loss diet does not require science. Atkins diet is good but it is not ideal for everyone.

A diet that works for you is something that lets you enjoy every aspect of your life without letting you feel deprived. But that diet must still be based on balance and moderation. It must make you feel realize that you can still look great, feel fit without making huge sacrifices, especially to your nutritional choices and not just your lifestyle.

A diet that works on you lets you look great and feel good about yourself. It is a diet that lets you live fit for life and obtain its rewards for the hard work that you put in.

About the author

Erliza Lee has a BS Biology degree. She likes writing topics related to health and travel.

Products

Vim Ch’i

“Strive for progress, not perfection.”

Vim Ch’i is a health and wellness centre in Davao that offers natural supplements and fitness products, which bring back your Vim (energy and enthusiasm) and Chi (vital energy to animate the body internally)

If you wish to contribute articles, infographics, etc. to our website, please email us admin[at]vimchi.info.